Hamilton College Admission Journals: Sara Feuerstein

That's a Wrap

Mon, 15 May 2006 13:26:17 GMT

The semester is finally over! The end of the school year is always a rush- academically and in "fun-ness." My semester concluded when I emailed my 30 page term paper to my professor. (Don’t worry, it was only supposed to be 20-25, but I was on a roll I guess.) While all my friends had thousands of finals and millions of papers to write, I only had a final exam and this term paper- the D.C. program is a sweet deal. In terms of fun, I came back up to Hamtech for Class and Charter Day, which is easily the best day of the calendar year. If you come to Hamilton next year you, too, will learn about the magical day that is Class and Charter. The end of the year also has May Day, which is an all day music festival with bouncy castles and picnic food, and good weather!

I’m looking forward to the summer, where I will be working at the press office of the French Embassy in DC. I’ll get a chance to use the French that I perfected (okay, maybe perfected isn’t the right word) during my semester in Paris and go to diplomatic parties. My roommate also scored tickets to a taping of the Colbert Report. (He loves freedom as much as we do.) I'll also spend time this summer going to concerts, tanning on the roof-top deck and sightseeing around DC. Then it’s back to Hamilton for senior year. I’ve had three great years at Hamilton so far; next year can only get better.

The Death of My Article

Fri, 05 May 2006 04:24:05 GMT

Recently, my boss and I went to hear the deputy assistant secretary of state for public diplomacy talk about her visit to a certain highly-publicized detainee facility. It was a very interesting presentation, and I learned a lot of things about the procedures there, which, to be honest, are a lot more humane than I had previously believed.

My boss asked me to write a "puff piece" on the detainee center, basically to tell people it’s not as bad as they think. I did adequate research on the topic and wrote a pretty good article for him. In the State Department, there are about 6 people who are allowed to speak publicly about the detention center. I am not one of them, so it had to go through approximately 892424 people before it could be published. As I had anticipated, the article caught fire was immediately sequestered.

Bureaucracy: 1, Me: 0

How to Avoid a Bad Interoffice or Diplomatic Party

Sat, 22 Apr 2006 15:40:48 GMT

An embassy recently offered me a summer internship. My current boss’s response (after making fun of the country) was, "well surely you will be invited to all sorts of interoffice and diplomatic parties," and he immediately began teaching me how to artfully escape the disaster parties. Other members of the office chimed in, and eventually I had four people sharing key advice on how to escape a bad professional party situation. I will now share this with you, in case you ever find yourself in such a position.

Never bring a coat. "They will take your coat, hide it in the closet or a bedroom, and then your chances for silently slipping away are obliterated." Asking for your coat draws attention to the fact that you wish to leave early.
Stand near the door. This greatly reduces your chances of obstruction, and of having to talk congenially with people on your way out.
Be on a mission. If you look around furtively as you’re leaving, chances are you will make eye contact with someone who will either a) want to strike up a conversation or b) think you’re a jerk for leaving early.
If a guy in the office has a band, don’t go, or at least make sure the band will play AFTER the food is served. That way you can still reap the benefits of delicious food without suffering through the band. "The only word I can use to describe listening to Bob’s band is 'agony'," said a coworker.
Never let the guy with the band plan the office party, because his band will play. See above.

The State Department teaches me more than I ever thought I would learn. I look forward to testing these theories and contingency plans this summer.

The Giant Octopus

Sat, 15 Apr 2006 16:22:08 GMT

Considering the zoo is less than 1/2 mile from our apartment (thank you Hamilton DC program for the sweet apartment hookup), it is almost shameful that I had not been until recently. The zoo, like many attractions in DC, is free and open to the public.

I finally got to see the giant octopus! The octopus feeding provided us with lots of entertainment. First of all, the term "giant octopus" is misleading. Its head (which I later found out was just an organ sack) is the size of a soccer ball. It floated gelatinously in the corner of the tank while a feeder poked a metal stick with a shrimp on the end into the tank. The feeder waved it around to give the semblance of a live shrimp, sometimes poking the octopus with it. The octopus felt it a little with its tentacles and then ballooned itself, engulfing the shrimp and metal stick. I hope octopii are more astute in nature, because it did not really attempt to eat the shrimp until the feeder poked it into its gullet.

I liked the panda too. Last fall, the residents of Washington began going nuts over the birth of the baby panda. The panda may or may not be the cutest creature in the zoo; we spent "dozens" of minutes at its exhibition. (The State Department's propaganda machine has taught me how to 'accurately' spin numbers- anything past 24 is "dozens", anything past 40 is "scores", depending on the image and effect we are trying to create.)

Anyway, if you are looking to pick up another serious addiction such as "lost", spider solitarie, or facebook, I suggest you check out the National Zoo's panda cam. Seriously, though, watch out; that panda is too cute for its own good.

Why Hamilton?

Sat, 15 Apr 2006 12:45:19 GMT

A close friend of mine just received her acceptance letter from Hamilton (!) and asked me how I chose to come here. I figured it might be an interesting topic of a journal entry.

I decided to enroll at Hamilton the morning deposits were due...being too late to mail in the deposit, my mom and I drove down to hand it in to the admissions office (my Mom hadn't seen it yet, so I like to think that we killed two birds with one stone).

I applied to a lot of schools. Each had small classes and strong government programs, but they differed greatly on setting and location- city, rural, and suburban. I’m not gonna lie, Hamilton was not initially my first choice, but it turns out Hamilton is a perfect fit, and I couldn’t imagine myself anywhere else. I think it was a combination of four factors:

No core requirements. My first year I took 8 classes in 8 different subjects. While my friends at other schools were stuck taking pre-determined classes for their first two years, we were allowed to choose classes based on our strengths and interests.
Great academic and extracurricular opportunities. I founded a new club relatively easily, I have spent a semester in both Paris and Washington D.C., my French class was the first to ever translate 12 letters from a French Revolutionary War general, and my Lewis and Clark sophomore seminar culminated in an amazing 10 day trip traveling from North Dakota to Oregon...just to name a few highlights.
Faculty. Hamilton prides itself on close student/professor relationships. By the end of the second week, most professors know students' names and personalities. Exchange occurs out of the classroom as well- I have probably shown up at office hours for at least 80% of my professors. Often professors will have the class over to their houses- Professor Cheng Li cooked our International Relations class an amazing Chinese feast, for example. In DC, we just had our professor over for dinner- my apartment held a delicious Passover Seder, and Professor Eismeier joined about 10 of us to help us consume it.
The community feeling. As a prospective student, I noticed that people held doors for each other. Guys still open the door for girls, and people will wait 20 seconds while you walk up a flight of stairs to let you into a building- it’s really amazing. The phenomenon was noticeably absent at all the other schools I visited.

Hamilton is a great place with great faculty, great students, great academics, and great opportunities. Admitted students, congratulations, and I encourage you to take a closer look so that you don’t miss out like I almost did.